Papua New Guinea LNG Project Clears Final Conditions to Proceed

Completes Sales Agreements and Financing Arrangements

March 12, 2010 05:35 PM Eastern Daylight Time

IRVING, Texas--(EON: Enhanced Online News)--Exxon
Mobil Corporation (NYSE: XOM) today announced that sales and
purchase agreements with liquefied natural gas (LNG) buyers and
financing arrangements with lenders are now complete and its affiliate,
Esso Highlands Limited, is proceeding with full execution of the Papua
New Guinea (PNG) LNG project.

“The project team successfully negotiated this
complex transaction for the project in a very difficult financial
market. We believe our record of developing and operating world-class
assets was a key component of this successful financing”

The integrated development includes gas production and processing
facilities in the Southern Highlands and Western Provinces of Papua New
Guinea; liquefaction and storage facilities with capacity of 6.6 million
tons per year, located northwest of Port Moresby on the Gulf of Papua;
and over 450 miles (700 kilometers) of pipelines connecting the
facilities.

The investment for the initial phase of the project, excluding shipping
costs, is estimated at US $15 billion. Over its 30-year life, PNG LNG is
expected to produce over 9 trillion cubic feet of gas. First LNG
deliveries are scheduled to begin in 2014, following a construction
period of about four years.

Neil Duffin, president of ExxonMobil Development Company, said, “The
project will be developed in compliance with the highest standards for
health, safety, environmental and social safeguards and will maximize
the value of the resource, supporting the PNG government’s objective to
strengthen its economy and infrastructure base for the benefit of its
people. The comprehensive national content plan focuses on development
of the local workforce, expansion of supplier capability, and strategic
community investment.”

Funding for the PNG LNG project will come from the co-venturers and
through market-rate loans arranged with export credit agencies and
commercial sources. “The project team successfully negotiated this
complex transaction for the project in a very difficult financial
market. We believe our record of developing and operating world-class
assets was a key component of this successful financing,” Duffin added.

In May 2009, the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, representatives
of project area landowners, and four provincial and 10 local-level
governments approved the PNG LNG Umbrella Benefits Sharing Agreement,
confirming support from landowners and all levels of PNG government. The
overarching agreement outlines the sharing of revenue streams from
royalties, development taxes and equity dividends totaling between US
$5.6-7.5 billion (15-20 billion PNG kina) over the project life.

The government of Papua New Guinea, through its Department of
Environment and Conservation, approved the project's environmental
impact statement that reviewed factors such as community needs,
sensitive environmental habitats, and biodiversity.

The project will supply four major LNG customers in the Asia region
through long-term sales, including: CPC Corporation, Taiwan; Osaka Gas
Company Limited; The Tokyo Electric Power Company, Inc.; and Unipec Asia
Company Limited, a subsidiary of China Petroleum and Chemical
Corporation (Sinopec).

The PNG LNG project is a key part of ExxonMobil’s strategy to capture
opportunities in the growing natural gas markets around the world.

ExxonMobil expects that the demand for natural gas in Asia Pacific will
more than double by 2030 and will rely on LNG imports that will satisfy
more than one-third of the region’s demand within this timeframe.
Natural gas can help meet the growing need for electricity and it has
fewer carbon dioxide emissions than other fuel sources.

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT: Estimates, expectations, and business plans in
this release are forward-looking statements. Actual future results,
including production rates and sales volumes, demand growth, project
plans, schedules, revenues, and costs, and commercial arrangements could
differ materially due to changes in long-term oil and gas price levels
or other market conditions affecting the oil and gas industry; political
or regulatory developments; reservoir performance; timely completion of
development projects; technical or operating factors; the outcome of
commercial negotiations; and other factors discussed under the heading
"Risk Factors" included in Item 1A of ExxonMobil's most recent Form 10-K
and posted on our website (www.exxonmobil.com).
References in this release to quantities of gas include amounts that may
not yet be classified as proved reserves but that we believe will
ultimately be produced.

About ExxonMobil

ExxonMobil,
the largest publicly traded international oil and gas company, uses
technology and innovation to help meet the world’s growing energy needs.
ExxonMobil holds an industry-leading inventory of resources, is the
largest refiner and marketer of petroleum products, and its chemical
company is one of the largest in the world. For more information, visit www.exxonmobil.com.